


I Hate Sand

by mildlyproductivetrashbag



Category: Dishonored
Genre: Crack, Fluff, Gen, Headcanon, low-chaos ending, slight introspection
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-31
Updated: 2017-03-31
Packaged: 2018-10-13 06:12:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,347
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10507914
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mildlyproductivetrashbag/pseuds/mildlyproductivetrashbag
Summary: What exactly does an ex-master assassin get up to in his free time? Murder? Puzzles? Cooking? Nope! He goes to the beach of course!





	

Daud never thought he would live past the age of fifty. He _was_ an assassin after all, and he was good at his job. He’d made a lot of powerful enemies in the past, and a lot of people were out for his blood. It was only his reputation and sheer fear that kept them from striking. He’d expected to die at the edge of a blade or perhaps at the hands of one of his own whalers. Never in his wildest dreams would he have expected to receive any other fate than that.

And yet here he was, against all odds, and despite everything he’d done.

The infamous Knife of Dunwall, who’d taken out innumerable nobles for nothing but coin, who once caught the attention of the Outsider himself, and almost singlehandedly brought about the fall of an empire, now lived as a vintner in Karnaca. The man who had risen to infamy through his own wit and skill, albeit some supernatural help, and whose very name struck fear into the hearts of every man and woman in Dunwall, now grew grapes and made wine for a living.

He didn’t even have the comfort of being alone in his misery. When he left Dunwall, most of his whalers had insisted on following, despite all his protests. They even went so far as to sneak onto the boat he was riding to Serkonos. He tried to send them back, he really did, but even that backfired on him. It only ended with them finding more and more ridiculous ways to tail Daud wherever he went.

He once caught them in his vineyard, wearing these _horrendous_ disguises, trying to pass off as trees or grass or whatever piece of nature was nearby. He nearly stepped on one of them. A lot of the whalers hid in the trees, perching on the uppermost branches where the foliage was thickest. At first, he decided to ignore them, see how long they lasted before they gave up. He spent an entire week with those idiots hiding in his trees.

He eventually realized his mistake.

Grapes, apples, and various other fruits were going missing by the dozen. He eventually lost his patience and threatened to pull them out one by one, only then did they finally get the hint and left the property.

Unfortunately for him, it was too much too hope for them to leave permanently. He soon found out that they somehow managed to acquire the house next door and were now using it to keep tabs on him. At this point, he just gave up and let them stick around. It wasn’t so bad. It was just like the old days, barring the assassinations and plague.

A year later, his vineyard was flourishing with the help of the other whalers. They had surprisingly taken up the art of winemaking with much gusto, and now their wine was well on its way to becoming one of the most well known in Karnaca. The merry band of ex-assassins were doing well themselves, even Daud had to admit that.

Life in Serkonos was simple. Calm. Quaint. And despite this, they had enough to keep themselves busy. They still took up missions for espionage, robbery, and similar conquests, but no more assassinations. Old habits were hard to break, and it made it easier for the whalers to get used to their new life. The thrill that came along with their previous occupation had planted a seed of adventure in each and every one of their hearts, and none of them really wanted to live a normal life anymore.

Some of the whalers took up hobbies, to while away the time when there were no missions to finish. Thomas learned how to bake (he was surprisingly good at it), Rulfio learned how to crochet of all things, a fact that the others teased him endlessly about, and Desmond took up writing again. He was currently working on a short novel. Daud himself took up wood carving, though considering the quality of his works so far, he might as well give it up.

In all his life, this was the first time he’d ever been truly content. He didn’t believe in happiness anymore, but if there was one word that could describe how he felt day after day, it would be contentment. He realized how fortunate he was. People like him didn’t get second chance. They didn’t deserve to. But by some twist of fate, he was spared from the punishment. Some inner part of him vowed to live a better life.  One that was worthy of the mercy Corvo had deigned to bestow upon him.

He told Thomas about this once, as a fleeting comment in one of their many conversations, and the younger man took this as permission to force him to try ‘new’ things, and as Rulfio said, to ‘Stop brooding and get out of the damn house for once.’

And so one sunny morning, he found himself being dragged out onto the beach along with the others despite his protests.

“The water won’t kill you,” Geoff reassured him as they sat in the cart.

“I am _not_ afraid of the damned water,” Daud retorted. “I grew up in Serkonos, you idiot. I learned how to swim the same time I learned how to walk. Do you really think I’d be afraid of the bloody ocean?” He glared at the man, who shrugged.

“Then why do you hate going to the beach so much?” A small voice piped up from the rear of the cart. It was Aidan, an orphan they had picked up in the market. He must have been around thirteen, or fourteen at the most.

“None of your business.”

Aidan pouted and turned away from him. He sullenly took a bite out of the apple slice he pulled out from his pocket, and the rest of the whalers rolled their eyes. They were used to his sulking and the mock arguments that he and Daud usually had. It was a daily occurrence that didn’t really bewilder anyone anymore.

Eventually, they arrived at the beach. Fortunately, not many other people were there at the time. But the few that were, had their eyes trained on the former assassins as they stepped into view. None of them knew what they were of course, but that didn’t stop them. They watched from afar, subtly staring from beneath parasols, above handkerchiefs and behind fans.

Daud realized how menacing they must have looked. Fifteen well-built men who moved with an unintentional predatory grace, walking down the beach front. What a sight they must have made. The heavy silence was broken by the sound of Aidan whooping and running to jump into the water. The others soon followed suit, leaving Daud alone with the food and discarded clothing, for people to gawk at. He sighed exasperatedly.

\----------------------------------------

Several hours later, everyone, even Daud, was soaked to the bone. The sun was setting on the horizon. Their laughter and chatter caught his attention, and despite himself, the corners of his mouth turned upwards. It was hard to imagine that only a few months ago, these men were assassins for hire. Now they seemed completely different people altogether.

Muffled footfalls pulled him out of his thoughts. Out of pure instinct, he whipped around and-

“ _Ack!”_

He received a faceful of sand. He spluttered and choked on the dry, salty, material even as the others began to laugh. It took him a while to finally get rid of the sand, and even then he could still feel some moving in his clothes. Aidan stood a long way away from him and had the nerve to even _giggle._ The cheeky little-

“Why you,” Daud began, and glared at the child. Aidan immediately took off in the opposite direction, leaving Daud to roll his eyes and mutter, “I hate sand.” and run off after him. The whalers’ laughter followed the two as they played a game of cat and mouse around the beach, casting a joyful mood on their little group.

**Author's Note:**

> i have no idea what this is. this entire fic was spawned from my friend who told me about the "I hate sand" meme. hahaha no regrets XD


End file.
